The Muggle Struggle
by agoldenthrone
Summary: Draco Malfoy never would have believed you if you told him he would be forced into living as a muggle, wandless, have Granger as his probation worker... and enjoy it. Hermione Granger never would have believed you if you told her she'd learn to love a Malfoy, let alone teach him to bake. By the time the year is up, they'll do both. Slow burn, EWE.


_Early August 1998_

'Hermione,' Harry puffed as he skidded to a stop at her desk, robes and glasses askew, 'we need to go, now! Kingsley sent a memo requesting us in his office at 11 o'clock but the damn memo got caught in that tornado earlier and -'

Her eyes darted to the clock, which read 10:59am. She let out a shrill shriek, leapt to her feet, and bolted for the stairs with Harry hot on her heels. Hermione and Harry had been in the lift not a half hour earlier while the Beast Division returned from a raid. That, of course, ended in the two sharing the lift with three-dozen (admittedly caged) newborn acromantulas and she'd had quite enough of that for one day _thank you very much._

They stopped outside the Minister for Magic's office just as the clock chimed for the hour. She gave herself a quick once over, smoothing out her wild hair to little effect and brushing out the creases in her blouse while Harry knocked. The doors opened to the grand office and they stepped inside.

'Hermione, Harry! Come in, we have much to discuss.' He stood and spread his arms in welcome, gesturing for them to sit. Despite seeing him in his chair numerous times, Hermione always loved to see Kingsley Shacklebolt as Minister for Magic, officially behind the desk. He'd been in power for not even three months, but the public were reassured by his calm nature and commanding presence.

Hermione smiled as she approached the desk, opting to take the snug maroon armchair closest to the fire. 'Kingsley, how lovely to see you again.' Despite only taking a role in the Auror department a month earlier, Hermione had spent countless hours talking to Kingsley since the end of the war. From his work helping to restore Hogwarts, to Weasley dinners at the Burrow, Kingsley Shacklebolt had fast moved from trusted acquaintance to true friend.

'What are we in trouble for this time, Kingsley?' Harry winked before greeting him properly. Soon after Harry had settled, Kingsley's casual demeanor was replaced with a more serious, professional one and dived right in.

'I know you two are rather new additions to the department but after the War there are few people remaining that I trust completely, let alone in the Ministry. I spoke with Minerva about this and she seems to quite agree with me that despite your age and lack of _formal_ experience, you're more than capable to handle more responsibilities. We have an issue with Azkaban,' Kingsley paused with a frown. 'We're already nearing capacity and still have quite a number of criminals to catch. Gaol or financial punishment isn't a good enough reprimand, despite what Fudge and Bagnold may have thought. House arrest is too easy…' Kingsley trailed off. Gawain Robards, a slim, unassuming man and current Head Auror walked in accompanied by two men, all looking a little worse for wear.

'Shacklebolt, my apologies for the delay. We lost track of time cornering and capturing Ebenezer Crabbe.'

Edmund Moody, second cousin once removed of one Mad-Eye Moody and significantly less paranoid, snorted at his boss before collapsing into a newly conjured chair, long legs stretched out in front of him. 'How he managed to hide that long baffles me, the man's dumber than a goldfish.'

Hermione recognised the third wizard as Alderton, built like a brick but quiet as a mouse. She was surprised to see him. Last she had heard he was stationed undercover in France seeking out Death Eater hideouts.

'Not a problem, Robards. It gave me time to discuss our topic with these two. I assume you are all up to date?' Kingsley questioned the newcomers. All nodded in assent.

'May I make a suggestion, sir?' Hermione said, cringing at how unconfident she sounded when spoken aloud.

Kingsley raised an eyebrow at her. 'Of course, Hermione. Earlier than I expected but very welcome nonetheless.' He motioned for her to proceed.

'I think… I think we may be going about this the wrong way for some cases. Please don't get me wrong, these Death Eaters absolutely need to be punished and reprimanded for their actions,' she said hastily, 'but there are some people that deserve a chance for rehabilitation and Azkaban won't offer them that. Azkaban will only allow those who believed in Voldemort's prejudiced ways to let their thoughts fester, and lead them to seek vengeance for their imprisonment while they believe themselves to be right. We've seen it happen with B-Bellatrix, for one - Azkaban made her more hell-bent on purifying the Wizarding race after she escaped.'

Hermione took a deep breath after mentioning Bellatrix and forced herself to release her tight grip on her armrests. It took more effort than she had wanted to admit to herself to say her name, let alone acknowledge Bellatrix's existence. She acknowledged it quite enough in the dead of night while she screamed herself hoarse. Harry, seeing her reaction, reached down and put his hand on hers, squeezing gently. She gave him a weak smile.

Low murmurs went between the three aurors while Kingsley nodded thoughtfully from behind his mahogany desk. 'You're right, Hermione. Continuing as we are will only create the same environment as last time. We've learned that Azkaban doesn't help cease the hatred. Knowing you, you've already figured out a solution, haven't you?' Kingsley said, shooting Hermione a knowing look.

She nodded. 'Wizarding folk have discriminated against, tortured, raped muggles and muggleborns for years for not having magical blood and it is absolutely ludicrous. The Wizarding world has failed to comprehend how much muggles are capable of doing without magic. Without our magic, wizards and witches can't even create light without a flame, but muggles have been doing so for hundreds of years! There should be nothing to be ashamed of for being a muggle, a muggleborn or having a muggle parent. Magic has given us an incredible advantage when it comes to our lives, but they have proven that there are many different ways to do the same things. I think the only way to truly rehabilitate from their views of muggles being inferior would be to join them.'

Gasps went around the room at her last sentence. 'You can't strip someone of their magic, Granger! It's a part of us! You'd be taking a limb!' said an angered Alfred Alderton, his face quickly reddening.

'Yes you bloody well can, Alderton!' Edmund Moody growled, 'Don't you remember how many times those wankers risked our entire being?! In Azkaban or in the muggle world, they're still without magic and for a good damn reason and a hell of a lot less dangerous for it!' Edmund Moody was thankfully less high-strung than Mad-Eye but was equally as outspoken.

Up until this point, Robards had remained silent while others spoke. After a quick look to Kingsley followed with a pointed glare at his arguing aurors, he raised his wand and flicked a silencing charm at them. Hermione winced at the piercing glares the arguing duo pointed towards Robards.

'How would you suggest we go about this, Granger? I hardly think letting Death Eaters loose in the muggle community would end well for any parties involved.'

She took a breath before looking up from her now twisted hands, slowly moving her eyes around the room. If it weren't for Harry next to her, she would have felt entirely out of place. They were the two newest recruits, and despite having experience far beyond their years as Kingsley had said, she still felt ill equipped. Her newest title from the Daily Prophet, 'The Brightest Witch of the Age' was far too much pressure.

'In muggle communities there have been countless studies on whether imprisonment or rehabilitation is most beneficial. While punishment has been the solution for hundreds of years, 30% of those imprisoned are likely to reoffend in an equal or worse manner to their initial conviction. In the past 15 years, rehabilitation has been implemented as an alternative to traditional imprisonment. Offenders involved in rehabilitation have a reoffending rate of 7%.

'Offenders would be placed in Ministry approved safe houses in a muggle community, forcing them to learn to live like a muggle. By stripping them of their wand they would have no use but to live side by side, learning how to interact in the very communities they helped to damage and destroy. While there are some offenders that would not be willing, I think offering this alternative to Azkaban could be beneficial. It would not only educate, but also help to remove the stigma associated with muggles. If it helps change the mind of even one person, wouldn't that be worth it? It would also allow the Ministry time to search through properties and possessions to remove and destroy any dark items before the offender's return to the Wizarding world.'

'What about warding? Monitoring offenders? We don't have the resources to babysit all over Britain.'

Harry leaned forward in his chair before speaking. 'Of course, Head Robards. Full warding around properties, exclusion zones to prevent them leaving and entry only to authorised visitors. A modified Fidelius Charm would work well, and I know Hermione could easy do it. A Ministry representative would visit bi-weekly and during the day they would be required to volunteer their time in a worthwhile organisation to help repay their debts to the community.'

'Hermione, how do you feel about leading the Ministry's new Rehabilitation program?' Kingsley questioned with a wink.

* * *

 **I hope you've enjoyed this prologue! I expect this to be a bit of a slow burn, and gradually end up where the summary is. This starts with Hermione's involvement and creation of the Rehabilitation program, and Draco's involvement in this.**

 **It has been an immensely long time since I've written anything so I'd love any feedback you have to give me. In the past I've struggled with chapter lengths, but I hope to be looking at around 4 - 5k per chapter from here on out. I've left it at a small prologue to see if people are interested and if it would be worth my while to continue. Thanks!**


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